Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1887-03-09
CATCHING HALIBUT.
Orudsery Of the Crews Of Ameri-
can Fishing Vessels.
Where the ITaiISut and Cod Are Found
and How the Former l. Cau%Et-A
Dangerous Calling Which Tires
10th Courage and Patience.
~ v Star1


she Goldfish grounds, still there are fish
'ng sTnaclSs which are employed solely
catching them. though, Of course, a
variety OF other fish is sure TO be caught
At the same time, such az cod, haloe, ling
and ray. On the other hand a sch ooner
devoted 10 catching cod only often returns
from trip without a single halibut, and
The price Of the latter is rs a consequence
much higher.
Nearly all the fishing vessels that bring
Tire product OF their labor to the New York
market belong 10 the New England coast
When gong out 10 the fishing ground they
take on board, first, a full supply Of drink
ing water and whatever provisions they
are not likely TO get at their native towns
along the coast From fifteen 10 twenty
dve tons OF ice are put on board for saving
the prospective take OF fish. CorGed and
fresh beef, ham, salt pork, eggs. tea and
coffee and sugar, with plentiful supply
Of vegetables, are also shipped. II fishing
tackle ia required, the necessary pur-
chascs are made, and when the captain is
assured that no nccessarics have been for
gotten the sails are set and the voyage
begun. 1t may be the point of Ges-
tination is Nantucket shoals, or away of
to the Grand Banks, where the halibut are
more plentiful Very few OF the fishing
vessels from Connecticut and Rhode
Island ports go so far to sea as the Grand
Banks, though they occasionally go up
along tho coast as far as Nova Scotia
From the time the schooner puts to sea
until she returns to port again the life OF
the crew is one OF drudgery, accompanied
by many risks of LIE. There are fogs to
be encountered 50 thick that, as an old
sailor put il ''thcy had TO sharpen the yes
sells cu:-water 20 get her through it," The
whistle Of an ocean steamer may he heard
rs plai2ly as possible, and the steamer
herself remain invisible unless she comes
within forty or fifty feet of the hsh!ngves
sel Many hairbreath escapes from acct
1ents OF this nature are recorded, and
many a schooner comes iuto port with her
bOwsprit or her stern torn away by col
lision with transatlantic steamer or an
other sailing vessel. AS rule the name
Of the vesSe, iniiicting the damage can not
be ascertaincd, owing to the fog, so that
the owner Of the boat has TO bear all the
expense of tho injury. Also vessels have
been lost in the fogs which almost con-
unually Prevail on the banks, without ever
a single member OF the crew being heard
from, the explanation of their mysterious
disappearance being that they have been
run down and not a man on board of them
saved. Big storms sometimes, but not
worry ofton, bring disaster 10 the boats.
They arc as stanch craft as brave the sea.
In the big storm Of January, 1851, which
wrecked so many vessels, including the
Hilton Castle, "A Gloucester schooner on the
Georges bank turned completely upside
down in the water and righted again. The
masts smashed of at the deck when they
struck the water, and the hull rolled COM
plctcly over. The ballast was fast TO the
bottom Of the vessel; her matches had been
L Al
in the cabin. The stove LETT its mark on
the ceiling of the cabin and almost set it
on fire, but the door was thrown open for
a minute and wave flooded the fire ont.
There is neither Sunday nor holiday
known on board a fishing vessel while
away on trip. The men arc called be-
fore day-brcak, and after a breakfast of
coffee and ham and eggs or a steak, they
begin fishing. When practicable they go
out in tho dories, and after setting the
trawl 20 on fishing with hand lines. The
trawl is y lorg line with baitcd hooks at
distances Of about yard along its eLtire
length This is weighted and lowered TO
the bottom, with ole end attached to line
made fast to buoy In the full and water
the water in which the halibut and cod are
sought for varies in depth from seventy
five to one hundred fatboms; but in spring
they may lie found in water fourteen
fathoms deep. There are parts of the
Georges bank VIII erc there is only depth
Of cigh, or nine feet, and haddOck may he
fou nd here. The hand line is about the
thickness OF a lead-rencil, ard has lead of
about tw pounds weight to sink it. Below
the lead is six feet of smaller line, called a
snood, and at the end of this is the hook,
which has a shank three inches long, and
its bend describes the segment of a circle
nearly two inches in di ameter.
The bait used in the capture Of halibutis
generally monhadon, or, as they are other
wise lIuo wn, lnossbunkcrs, bony-fish or
porgies. Hcrrings arc used when they can
be obtained cheaply, and sometimes slices
Of goldfish or halibut are made to answer
for the same purpose. Garfish is an ex.
ccllent bait, being long and admirably
adopted fer sliciny. Its shining sides form
an attractive-loolIing morsel, bat it is
rare fish TO catch in these waters. Mack
crel also make n good bait, and SO do
smells, but as the menhaden is more p!cnti-
full than any of these it is more used. The
fish is cut in the middle and the head part
is simply strung on the hook through the
eyes. The 9th or rart is forced on the hook
near the tail There is To endeavor made
10 hide the iron, and there is no necessity,
because when the halibut wants TO eat he
will swallow bait and hook a; bite.
The fisherman keeps the bait almost
constantly moving by keep ing up saw
ing motion with the part of tho lire he
holds in his hand To the amateur fisher
man, whom his bait is taken hold OF by
halibut, his first impression would be that
his hook had got stuck in the bottom of
the sea and that pretty lively earthquake
was going on in the earth under his boat
From the time that the haiibut ia hooked
1t often takes an hour and sometimes two
hours TO get it On board. The fish is so
powerful that il would be risky TO try and
pull IT up at once for fear of breaking the
hold Of the hook. Whenever any of the
men on the boats which are regularly en-
plcyed in the Codfish trade happens to
catch halibut, he gets bonus of fifteen
or twenty cents in addition to his usual
pay, which generally amounts TO twenty
five dollars Tor the trip. His wages, how
. ever, entirely depend on the amount of
fish caught anu the price they fetch in
markee a take Of thirty-hve hundred or
four thousand 6sh is considered very
good. and sometimes this number is ex-
ceeded. ...-
Nearly every vessel in the fishing trade
has, among her crew Of seven or eight
men, ct least two coed musicians. and
when fishing is no good, or on the way TO
the banks or coming home again the men
forget good deal OF their hardships in
dancing or singing TO the music Of the
melodeon, the fiddle or the banjo.
AT recent fashionable weddings palm
trees, hemlock, clematis, autumn leaves
and other tokens Of the waning season,
have boon used for decorations.